Trade barriers

In this July 5, 2019, file photo Andre Harris works on the line at beyond Green, a maker of biodegradable bags in Lake Forest, Calif. U.S. factory activity expanded at a slower rate in July, as measures of production and employment fell. The Institute for Supply Management, an association of purchasing managers, says that its manufacturing index slipped to 51.2 last month from 51.7 in June. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. factory activity expanded at a slower rate in July for the fourth consecutive month as the Trump administration squares off with other countries on trade. The Institute for Supply Management, an association of purchasing managers, said Thursday that its manufacturing index...

SHANGHAI (AP) — U.S. and Chinese envoys held "constructive" trade talks on Wednesday, the White House said, after President Donald Trump rattled financial markets by accusing Beijing of trying to stall in hopes he will fail to win reelection in 2020. The meeting, aimed at ending a tariff war over...

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Inflation and growth have sagged in the eurozone, official figures showed Wednesday, bolstering the case for the European Central Bank to inject another dose of monetary stimulus into the 19-country currency bloc at its September meeting. The European Union's statistics...

A U.S. flag flies on a U.S. consulate car, with the backdrop of buildings in the Lujiazui financial district, outside a hotel where U.S. trade negotiators are staying, in Shanghai Wednesday, July 31, 2019. (Greg Baker/Pool Photo via AP)

SHANGHAI (AP) — The Latest on China-U.S. trade talks (all times local): 4:00 p.m. U.S. and Chinese negotiators have ended a new round of talks aimed at ending a tariff war over trade and technology with no word on whether they made any progress. The two days of talks in Shanghai, were the first...

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, right, accompanied by local farmers Ingrid Shervington, second left and her daughter Victoria Shervington-Jones, inspects the chickens during his visit to rally support for his farming plans post-Brexit, at Shervington Farm, in St Brides Wentlooge near Newport, south Wales, Tuesday, July 30, 2019. (Adrian Dennis/Pool Photo via AP)

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Wales on Tuesday on a national tour to reassure voters that his push for Brexit "come what may" won't hurt the economy and rip apart the U.K. The move failed to assuage currency markets, as the pound slid to a new 28-month low. A day after...

FILE - In this May 13, 2019, file photo, commuters walk by the new Huawei P30 smartphone advertisement on display inside a subway station in Beijing. Two months after U.S.-Chinese talks aimed at ending a tariff war broke down, both sides are trying to temper hopes for a breakthrough when negotiations resume Tuesday, July 30, 2019 on an array of disputes that has grown to include tension over Chinese tech giant Huawei. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)

BEIJING (AP) — Two months after U.S.-Chinese talks aimed at ending a tariff war broke down, both sides are trying to temper hopes for a breakthrough when negotiations resume Tuesday on an array of disputes that has grown to include tension over China's tech giant Huawei. Rhetoric has hardened...

FILE - In this Thursday, June 6, 2019 file photo French President Emmanuel Macron, left, meets U.S President Donald Trump during a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. President Donald Trump promised on Friday July 26, 2019 to retaliate against France for adopting a pioneering tax on internet giants like Google, Amazon and Facebook. Trump said referring to French President Emmanuel Macron: "We will announce a substantial reciprocal action on Macron's foolishness shortly."(Ian Langsdon/POOL via AP, File)

PARIS (AP) — France is pushing ahead with a landmark tax on tech companies like Google and Facebook despite U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of retaliatory tariffs on French wine. That's rattling French vintners, who sold 1.6 billion euros ($1.78 billion) worth of wine last year to American...

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The U.S. on Thursday imposed sanctions on three stepsons of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, accusing them of forming part of a sophisticated scheme that stole hundreds of millions in dollars from food import contracts at a time of widespread hunger in the crisis-wracked...

BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets mostly fell on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he could impose more tariffs on Chinese goods and Japan's exports tumbled. Benchmarks in London, Frankfurt, Shanghai and Tokyo all declined, as did Wall Street futures. Trump alarmed investors by...

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, left, welcomes Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin at the G-7 Finance Wednesday July 17, 2019 in Chantilly, north of Paris. The Group of Seven rich democracies' top finance officials gathered Wednesday at a chateau near Paris in search of common ground on the threats posed by digital currencies. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

CHANTILLY, France (AP) — The Trump administration is objecting to France's plan to tax Facebook, Google and other U.S. tech giants, a rift that's overshadowing talks between seven longtime allies this week on issues ranging from digital currencies to trade. As finance ministers from the Group of...